April showers bring the juvenile stage of small semi-aquatic salamanders!
I went out this morning to plant some trees, and encountered this vibrant little gummy worm basking in the rain. It’s a red eft, the teenager form of an Eastern Newt. They wander around on land sporting this splashy spotted look for a couple of years, before slipping into a pond and taking their final olive-green form.
I sat in the rain and watched it for awhile. They move like a mix between tired rock climbers and those wooden ducks you push around with slappy leather feet. And for a delightful split second, I saw its wee little tongue! It appeared to be licking a raindrop off the stem of a leaf. Which, btw, broke my brain. Or at least its cuteness gauge. Some beautiful things happen on bright sunny days, but some of them wait for the rains.
Hope you’re keeping a nice mix of warm and dry and enjoying the delights of a good puddle, getting muddy, and unexpected spring encounters!
Have a great week folks!
~Kate